A Conceptual Photo Project Captures The Decadence Of Indian Identities

Suryaa Naman
Suryaa NamanRishabh

There are multiple mediums of art and each of them have their own characteristics and tools with which artists work. Like sounds in music, architecture plays with structures, sculpture plays with materials and forms, dance with movement and painting/ graphics design with colours and palettes. But if there's one particular medium that combines almost all of these elements to express an idea or emotion, it's photography or more specifically, conceptual photography.

Working with abstract concepts and weaving multiple narratives of India, Brown identity and ethnicity in his photographs, Rishabh, a Mumbai-based photographer is using cultural iconographies and ritualistic motifs with the human form to create a bold directory of the vibrant and eclectic expression of our diverse country.

His series, Remagine is an attempt to take a fresh look of paintings and sculptures by established artists and spin a new story out of them. Some reflect the decadence of the society, and Some portray the transformations within. But all of them are re-interpretations with an intriguing approach, while retaining the visual essence of the original works. Rishbah feels that Being an Indian artist, he doesn't need to borrow anything from anywhere else when he grew up to see colors and spiritual vibes in his own culture.

Suryaa Naman
Suryaa NamanRishabh

One of his latest projects is called Suryaa Naman. This picture is a documentation of the emotions you feel after wearing this color, experiencing your divine self. The half circle moon is a representation of a divine aura while the saffron represents the positive energy that the woman is carrying around in this picture. RIshabh also painted the wall behind her to represent the raw combination for the images captured.

Rishabh speaks further about his background, "I born and brought up in avillage at West Bengal. So in Bengal, I learnt how to become an artist. I love my roots and traditions. I meet with and mostly work with people and women who do not have a high education and who come from underprivileged communities in India. Humans have the most creative mind but only some people use it for good. I know myself ver well and I'm still exploring my inner voice with this meditation process. I'm also trying to teach the people I meet that we can celebrate life with art , no matter how we look or how we talk, the only thing that matters is that we have courage and be kind to people."

Photo projects
Photo projectsRishabh

Apart from being a visual artist, Rishabh is a bengali actor, who did a few commercial films in Kolkata. He is also a Bharatnatyam Dancer that is deeply inspired by Natyasatraa, India's earliest literature on music and drama written by Bharat Muni. Rishabh is influenced by Rabindranath Tagore's art and poetry, Satyajit Ray's films, Ritiwik Ghwtak's films, Raj Kapoor's films, Bhagvad Geeta, Kuran, language and most importantly his life and the people who around him, nature and earth. The artist believes that the Indian culture and tradition is the reason behind his artistic mind.

And that is certainly reflected in his work. The artist paints a stunning and powerful picture of West Bengal's rich cultural heritage through the people. Rishabh's exemplary style is a window into the spiritually colourful and decadent culture of India.

Follow his work here.

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